


Ready or Not

by monsterslut13



Series: Forever, Each Other [2]
Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Andromeda probably isn't ready for the Ryder Twins, Angst, Customized Female Ryder, Customized Male Ryder, Fluff, Humans have got to seem weird to the Angara, M/M, Morning After, Ryder Twin Feels, So not entirely canon compliant I guess, Writer is changing canon a little, saying goodbye, space boyfriends
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-20 04:06:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,226
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17015397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/monsterslut13/pseuds/monsterslut13
Summary: In that moment, he wanted nothing more than to be just Lucian...for it to be just him and Reyes, but the universe has a habit of getting in the way. A message from the Nexus arrives bearing good news, Lilith is awake and asking for him, the truth that Lucian has been putting off about their father and his status as Pathfinder is the last thing she should have to hear...





	Ready or Not

**Author's Note:**

> Me: *internally screaming* WHY IS THE ROMANCE BETWEEN MY SPACE HUSBANDS SO...SHORT? *curses Bioware...but not too much*
> 
> I do not own Mass Effect, I'm just kicking sandcastles over in it's playground
> 
> {also I have no beta so all stuff ups are clearly my own from lack of proof-reading skills...although to be fair after a while they all just blur together}

“ _ Pathfinder, you have a new message that requires your immediate attention. _ ”

 

Lucian wanted to slap SAM, never mind the fact the AI didn’t actually have corporeal form, he was warm and floaty, utterly comfortable with the weight of heartbreak lifted off his shoulders. He didn’t want to open his eyes, instead the Pathfinder was happy enough to stay wrapped up in the arms of his lover as light filtered in through the gaps in the bedroom shutters. It was morning, a part of him didn’t want it to end...not after last night. 

 

“ _ Pathfinder, I am aware you do not want to be interrupted but the message comes from Doctor Carlyle concerning your sister’s condition. Lilith is awake and asking for you. _ ”

 

His eyes flickered opened and he hissed at the sharp pain from the light. The sound making Reyes stir beside him and grumble incoherently at the loss of Lucian’s warmth when the soldier sat up. “I hear you SAM.” Lucian brought up the familiar orange screen of his omni-tool and sent a message to everyone with an order to prep the ship for departure in half an hour. If they pushed it, the  _ Tempest _ could be back at the Nexus in four days. “Send a message back to Doctor Carlyle to let him know where heading back to the Nexus. Tell him to keep me posted on Lilith’s condition.”

 

“ _ As you wish Pathfinder. _ ”

 

“And you’re leaving.” Lucian tried not to notice the sound of dejection in Reyes’s voice. “I was hoping you’d at least stick around for breakfast. Let me show you Kadara’s hospitality in kind...repay you for last night.” He wrapped his arms around Lucian’s shoulders, hugging the soldier from behind as he planted soft kisses along his neck, lingering just for a moment over the tattoo on the Pathfinder’s neck. It was obvious the two of them had a lot to sort out if they were going to make sure their relationship worked.

 

“My sister’s awake,” Lucian explained. He leant back into Reyes, letting the smuggle surround him like a warm, sexy as sin cocoon. “I have to get back to the Nexus. I---didn’t tell her that dad died so I have to face that music sooner or later.” Lucian shifted on the bed and planted a kiss on the other male’s forehead before standing up. His clothes were strewn all over the place but his boxers were the closet. “Reyes...last night...you said you wanted to do this, just us. So...does that make you my boyfriend or something?”

 

The smuggler smirked as he watched Lucian from the bed. “Only if that makes you  _ my  _ boyfriend Ryder.” He shuffled over to the edge and practically used the soldier to get up, Lucian was taller than him and certainly more muscular but he still had that air of foolish youth about him and that spark in his eyes. 

 

Lucian chuckled. “Boyfriend, fuck that sounds so childish. Man friend? Nah...that just makes it sound a million times worse.” He finished dressing, pulling the offending fabric over his body that was one hundred percent ready and willing for round two with the object of his desire.  _ Restraint Lucian Ryder. Practice some restraint. _ “Would you walk me to the  _ Tempest? _ ” 

 

“You don’t have to ask,” Reyes hummed. He watched Lucian disappear into the small living room and finished dressing as the Pathfinder helped himself to a glass of water and a quick protein bar from the kitchen. When he came out, Lucian was sitting on the sofa lacing his boots up with a concerned look on his face. “Lucy, I wanted to talk to you about what you said about you dying.” The soldier stopped in his tracks and gazed at him, the expression on his face was almost like he wanted Reyes to forget that he’d even said it. “I won’t stop you now, as I suspect you would  _ really _ like to see your twin, but I want to know. Okay? You said no lies.”

 

Lucian sighed. “Cliff notes version? The Archon set a trap, the only way to get out of it was if there was no biological life signs so SAM stopped my heart.” He rubbed his palms on his thighs and got back up, there was obviously more to say judging my the look on the soldier’s face. “He injected something into my blood, he wanted SAM but needed to know how he worked with me. Lexi said that it is out of my system by now but it would appear that the Archon has me in his sights.” 

 

“Well you’ve certainly had a busy few weeks,” Reyes noted. He knew about the miraculous rescue of the Salarian Ark as well as the death of Pathfinder Raeka but those details weren’t exactly available to the public. The King fell in beside Lucian as they left via the back exit to his apartments on their way back to the docks. They stayed silent but it wasn’t awkward, it was comfortable and welcome, giving the two of them time to process everything that had happened between them since yesterday. Reyes couldn’t help but smirk at the bewildered looks everyone was giving them, what was a third rate smuggler like him doing walking blissfully beside the human Pathfinder?

 

“Everyone’s looking,” Lucian mused happily as they entered the docks. The Pathfinder could see Cora waiting for him along with Liam, the former huntress looked about as impressed as Kandros did when he chose scientific research over the militia on Eos. He stopped in his tracks and spun around to catch the smuggler in a kiss he probably suspected was coming. Reyes didn’t mind one bit. “My private comm channel is 638.5,” Lucian breathed against his lips. “I might not be able to see you for a while but I’m more than willing to test out the sound proofing on my quarters.”

 

Reyes groaned. “You little incubus. Your leaving is already hard enough, don’t play with my hear as well.” 

 

Lucian winked playfully. “See you soon Reyes.” He let go of the man’s hands and sauntered happily over to the doors, smiling at his two friends waiting for him. 

 

“Ryder I hope you know what you’re doing,” Cora warned. Everything he was doing by associating with Reyes was bad for his public image but in the years she'd known him, Cora had never seen him happier than when he was with the smuggler. Everything went downhill after that cave in the Badlands followed by twelve weeks of awkward unease and feral scowls every time someone mention Kadara. All it took was for Vetra to lose a bet against Gil and the Turian was emailing their Pathfinder for permission to get supplies that could only find in Kadara. If making up with Reyes Vidal was what got the happy version of Lucian back, Cora knew she couldn't do anything about it. 

 

“Not knowing is half the fun,” Lucian answered. He walked up the ramp into the hanger bay, ignoring the huge smirk that Peepee had on her face. Gil was working on the Nomad and was yacking away about something whilst he waved his hand in the air for the tool Peebee was holding. “Peebee give Gil the wrench.”

 

Gil stopped mid-sentence and turned his head slowly as if he'd heard a ghost, obviously he was talking about something he shouldn't have. “Ah...Ryder. Didn't see you there. Have a good night?” 

 

Peebee sniggered at the question. “Obviously. He's got a couple hickies on his neck.” 

 

“You guys have got to find something better to do,” Lucian sighed with exasperation. “Peebee how's the work on Poc and Zap coming along? I'm gonna need that report you promised me three days ago.” He tapped his Asari on the head affectionately as he passed her, making directly for the helm. 

 

“You’re no fun Ryder!” Peebee called out after him. 

 

The soldier simply waved her off and continued on his way to the helm for pre-flight checks. Kallo was his usual chatty self, this time he was talking about how clear the atmosphere in Kadara was since the Vault had been reset. Suvi was quiet, Lucian knew why and he hated it. She was fun to chat to about the most random things, faith included. Once they were safely off world, Lucian knocked on the consol by the young doctor to catch her attention. “Hey Suvi, you got a minute?” 

 

“Of course Pathfinder.” 

 

Lucian pressed his lips together with a sigh. “I wanted to apologise for snapping at you the other day. It was unprofessional and entirely out of character. I'm sorry Suvi. I have no excuse.” 

 

“Did you and Reyes make up?” Suvi queried, the redhead still working away on her consol without looking up. 

 

“Yeah I guess you could say that,” Lucian mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck as a faint blush spread across his cheeks. He was the Pathfinder, a soldier gifted in biotics, not a schoolgirl with a crush. 

 

“Good.” Suvi swiveled around in her chair and set her hands in her lap, she chewed her lip a little, like she was thinking about what she was gonna say before she spoke. “I didn't know you from before the Initiative Lucian, but Cora explained a few things that made sense. You really like him don’t you? Reyes I mean.” 

 

“I really do Suvi,” Lucian answered honestly. “Which is a first for me. But I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. If you wanna lick weird ass space rocks I won't stop you without the appropriate checks first.”

 

“Apology accepted Lucian. You should really go have a shower. You look like you went ten rounds with a Krogan,” Suvi teased. “Then Lexi was looking for you in the med-bay. She wanted to chat to you about Lilith's medical report.” 

 

“That Krogan has a name,” Lucian snorted. “But seriously Suvi, thanks.” He ruffled up her hair much to the doctor's annoyance and hurried off for his shower, the idea of keeping Lexi waiting made him shiver, twenty-two and he still sucked when it came to dealing with medical doctors. 

 

* * *

 

Lucian had a routine when he came back to the Nexus; check in with Tann, have a stroll around Pathfinder Hall, see Kesh then visit cryo. When they landed at the docks, Lucian threw all of that list out the window as he raced off to see his sister. He hadn't spoken to her since SAM and Harry had hooked up that conversation after Eos, but Lucian still had no idea what to tell her about their dad. Of course she knew that the Golden World's hadn't panned out but when it came to Alec Ryder...fuck he had no idea what to say. 

 

Jaal suggested the truth. Yeah thanks Jaal, it wasn't always easy when it came to the Ryder twins. Lilith had an explosive temper when pushed the wrong way and Lucian just hid his feelings. They were like fire and ice, oil and water, but most importantly it was always them against the universe. 

 

The cryo bay was mostly empty when Lucian arrived, the first thing he noticed was the head of pale blonde hair sitting up in bed with a datapad. Apparently Lilith had talked Tann into giving her light duties until she was cleared for active duty. She wanted on the Tempest and Lucian was there to agree whether or not he wanted her next time the left. As if she could sense him, Lilith glanced over the top of her work and the smile on her face could have lit the Nexus for a year. “Luc!” she chirped happily, jumping off the bed with the grace of a cat. 

 

Lilith practically launched herself at Lucian, the twin hugging each other like they were afraid they'd disappear. Ryder’s never cried in public but they were damn close. “Is that a hickey on your neck little brother?” Lilith gaped, pulling back to check him over. “We come two point five million light years across dark space and you manage to get yourself laid? How the hell did this even get passed dad?” The elder Ryder noticed the change in his face almost instantly. “Luc, where's dad?” she whispered, her tone ice cold as she put some distance between the two of them. 

 

“He…” Lucian licked his lips, they'd suddenly gone dry and he lost the ability to actually speak. “He didn't make it Lil. He…died on Habitat Seven.” The soldier watched the painful shock flash across his sisters face and the tears that welled in her bright blue eyes, eyes that he shared with her. “There was this vault...SAM and dad reset it. There was some backlash and my helmet shattered…I was suffocating. Dad gave me his helmet.” He was expecting something…anything like cold, burning rage from his twin, but he didn't expect her to melt into him like they were kids hiding from a thunderstorm. “I'm sorry Lil...I really am.” 

 

Lilith...he had to hand it to her, she kept her composure but he could see the sadness in her eyes. “Harry said the Pathfinder has to sign off on my medical report if I want to join the Pathfinder team. Where’s Lieutenant Harper?”

 

“Um...I’m the Pathfinder,” Lucian confessed sheepishly. “Dad transferred SAM to me because there were things he didn’t want anyone else to know about the Initiative...about mum’s illness. Things I’ll tell you when there aren't ears listening in.” He hated,  _ hated  _ the information overload Lilith was obviously getting if the way her jaw was squared was anything to go by. Lil, I know it’s a lot to process and you’re not exactly used to following my orders but if you wan’t on the  _ Tempest _ I’m happy to have you.” He steered her over to the bed and the two of them sat down quietly, “there’s a lot about Heleus that we were so wrong about. But now we’re here, we have to make do with what we have, starting with the Vaults and the Kett.”

 

Lilith frowned, “the Kett?”

 

“A hostile alien species from another galaxy that can literally turn the Angara into them,” Lucian explained. “They call the process Exaltation. I’ll have Cora forward you all the information that we have on the local species and the Kett. Everything we’ve dealt with since we arrived.” He put his arm around his sister’s shoulder and pressed a kiss to her hairline. “Now that you’re awake...I want to see about a funeral for dad. We never had one.”

 

“They...kept his body?” Lilith gulped. 

 

“I wasn’t gonna let them do the funeral until you woke up,” Lucian confessed. He ran his fingers through her hair, an action that took them both back to their childhood when they were small and you couldn’t tell them apart. “Remember when we were little, before dad got that posting in the Citadel and we went camping? Just us four?” Lilith nodded silently. “Well there’s a planet, Havarl, I was thinking of checking with the Angaran government if we could cremate him there? What do you think?”

 

Lilith mused on the idea for a few minutes before she nodded. “These...Angara. There was a bit of information in the package that Tann gave me, not a lot but I get the feeling that it’s only what we’re able to get our hands on right now. Would they let us?”

 

“I can get Jaal’s help with his people,” Lucian assured her. “Jaal is the Angaran representative on the Tempest. Our first contact was...well we landed on Aya on fire”

 

“I would have paid to see that,” she chuckled sadly. Lilith sighed deeply and relaxed into her brother’s hold, little brother or no, Lucian towered over her. “Six hundred years across dark space and we lose him not even a day into being woken up...this sucks.”

 

“The situation with the scourge and the Kett was something we couldn’t have counted on.” Lucian wouldn’t lie but he had the same thoughts that Lilith was having right now shortly after arriving at the Nexus. Nothing had gone right when the first wave arrived and it just went downhill from there, but now they were just starting to pull themselves together again. A memorial for the human Pathfinder was something that the people of the Initiative needed. “So sis...let Harry do his last round of tests to check how fit you are, I’ll have Lexi look at the reports and back Harry’s findings then you’ll be free to join on the Tempest.” He took a quick look at the time and groaned when he noticed an unread message from Addison. “Fucking hell...I gotta go baby sis. Annoying part about being Pathfinder...politics.”

 

Lilith grabbed his arm to stop him from leaving. “Addison can let me have you for another few minutes whilst you tell me about the person who left those marks on your neck.”

 

Lucian laughed and held his hands up in surrender. “His name is Reyes Vidal, he’s one of the Exiles. Well he left the Nexus on his own accord but currently he’s the King of the Heleus Underworld.” Judging by the look on her face, Lilith knew exactly who the Exiles were. 

 

“What the fuck Luc?” the blonde gaped upon hearing her brother was messing around with a criminal of all things. “Are you insane?”

 

He brushed her off with a shake of his head. “Sis, when you meet him, come back to me with the judgement, until then, just try to keep an open mind. I really like Reyes, not even gonna let my twin sister get in the middle of that.”

 

“Well shit,” she muttered. “You’re actually choosing someone over your family for once. You gotta be serious about him hey?”

 

Lucian shrugged. “Yeah...I really am. We both...well Reyes more but we both fucked up pretty bad and now we’ve got a chance to fix things. I can explain it all to you later on but I really gotta go see Addison. We settled another outpost a few weeks ago so I guess it could be about that. And I’ll explain that one as well.” He pressed a kiss to her tangled mass of golden curls and motioned to Harry that he was done, the doctor had been hovering by for some reason. “I’ll approve her assignment to the Pathfinder team if you want to sign off on it.”

 

“Sure thing Ryder,” the doctor nodded. “You might wanna get your ass to ops, Addison’s sent me a message. I’ll complete my final round of tests on your sister and hopefully she’ll be ready in the next few days.”

 

“She can hear you,” Lilith huffed from the bed. “Go do your Pathfinder thing little brother and leave me rest.”

 

“And here I thought there wasn’t any rest for the wicked Lil,” Lucian teased back as he trudged out of the cryo bay. He really wanted to spend some more time with his sister but apparently Addison didn’t feel the same way. He sighed as he entered the lifts, now that Lilith was awake, a funeral for their father was just what the Ryder twins needed more than anything else...it was time to say goodbye properly.

**Author's Note:**

> I definitely have a Christmas ficlet under way for Ryder and Reyes...which is strange for me since I'm literally the personification of the Grinch this time of year...


End file.
